PRESS DIGEST - Singapore newspapers - March 24

SINGAPORE, March 24 (Reuters) - The following are stories from Singapore newspapers on Monday. Reuters has not verified these stories.

THE STRAITS TIMES - Economists say Singapore's interbank lending rate may fall below 1 percent, dragging lower mortgage rates as well as savings and fixed deposit rates, due to the strong Singapore dollar and a 75-basis-point interest rate cut in the United States last week.

- Kuwait Finance House said it was still in talks to buy 97 units of GuocoLand's (GUOC.SI: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) freehold Goodwood Residence, raising hopes that the S$818.4 million ($590.9 million) property deal may be revived after it fell through earlier this month.

- StarHub (STAR.SI: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) and MobileOne (MONE.SI: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) have teamed up in a bid to build Singapore's new Internet Broadband Network that will allow users to surf at speeds at least 10 times faster than the current network.

- The government will focus on regulating high-risk beauty treatments such as liposuction to ensure patient safety, Health Minister Khaw Boon Wan said.

THE BUSINESS TIMES

- Business confidence in Singapore has slumped to its lowest level since end-2004, according to a poll of 128 firms by the Business Times and SIM University.

- Singapore has drawn more than S$3 billion worth of manufacturing investments since the start of year.

- After dumping shares listed on the New York Stock Exchange for much of last year, Singapore investors snapped up a net $4 billion worth of U.S. corporates in the final quarter of 2007, when Wall Street posted its biggest fall in 20 years.